Arkansas Bride, the state’s largest bridal magazine, needed a brand new logo to replace a decade old one. The magazine is also celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, so a fresh look befitted the milestone. Expectations were high as the new logo will represent the magazine for another 10 years.

(Devan Malone)

"This will only be the third time we've updated the logo in the magazine's 25 years. It was about time our brand received a new look. We wanted something timeless and classic that could last another decade," said Devan Malone, the Marketing and Research Manager for Arkansas Business Publishing Group (ABPG), under which Arkansas Bride falls. She handles marketing for the magazine and was tasked to find the designer for their new logo.

Devan contemplated on assigning their internal design staff for the logo, but they would have cost about US$5,000 to US$7,000, depending on how many team members are included in the review process. Externally, they could have easily been charged US$15,000 to US$20,000 by an agency. To cut costs and also to be able to see a variety of designs, Devan decided to use Freelancer.com's Contests once again.

(Old Arkansas Bride logo)

"In 2013, we used Freelancer.com Contests for the logo redesign of ABPG. The contest ran for only a week and we received close to a thousand entries. For US$2,000 we were able to successfully relaunch the image of ABPG," said Devan who decided to use Contests once again for Arkansas Bride.

As soon as they posted the contest, they were overwhelmed by the results. Hundreds of entries poured in daily, and they had to meet every day to go through the judging process. "Our entire team set aside several hours each morning for a week to go through the submissions. For each meeting, we brought in a few outsiders from the company who don’t work directly with the brand. This went on for five days, and at the final meeting we made our decision," Devan said, who admitted it was difficult to pick just one out of the 1,435 entries.

(The Arkansas Bride team)

The work of Julia (Julabrand), a graphic designer from Canada, was picked. "Working with Julia was fantastic. She was very timely in making edits and receptive of our feedback. She understood our brand and worked hard to give us a logo that was new and fresh," said Devan, who added that they were so confident in her abilities that they also tasked her to design their 25th anniversary logos and social media icons. The package cost Arkansas Bride only US$1,500. "We're very pleased and excited to unveil Julia's work to our audience!"

(New Arkansas Bride logo)

The new logo will be introduced in December when they release their 25th Anniversary edition. "Julia designed a logo that will pop with our brides and keep with the trends of bridal magazines for years to come. Freelancer.com provided a stress-free way to get lots of options, interact with designers, and choose the best for our brand."

Get great designs from thousands of freelancers by posting your contest here.